The French Navy has intercepted and is inspecting an oil tanker travelling from Russia off the coast of Sicily, President Emmanuel Macron said on Thursday.
In a post on X, Macron said the vessel, the Deliver, had violated the law of the sea and was stopped on Tuesday.
A video he posted on X showed armed forces boarding the vessel. In a separate post on X, Defence Minister Catherine Vautrin said the ship is suspected of sailing under a false flag.
Macron said the operation against Russia's shadow fleet showed Europeans' determination. "We will not allow the shadow fleet to circumvent sanctions and finance Russia's war effort," Macron said.
Vautrin stressed that, to slow Russia's war economy, funding routes must be cut off. She said the actions of Russia's shadow fleet also pose a direct threat to safety at sea and to the environment.
France has stopped several ships in recent months that it suspects belong to Russia's shadow fleet.
